Several months after the start of the Covid-19 pandemic, consumers who responded to a June survey are showing greater optimism and a more powerful goal of buying a new vehicle compared to when they were interviewed in April. But separate studies indicate that these intelligent emotions would possibly be short-lived amid the resurgence of new cases.
When CarGurus.com’s vehicle search and acquisition site submitted its “Covid-19 Sentiment Study” in April, 79% of the 722 consumers who responded said they had delayed the purchase of a new vehicle. The effects released today from an updated survey revealed that when the same query was made to 779 buyers in June, this percentage fell to 69%.
The number of consumers who reported delaying the acquisition of a new vehicle indefinitely by the effects of the pandemic increased from 8% in April to 2% in the June survey.
Returning the figures, “98% who planned to buy before the pandemic, were still planning to buy within a year of responding to the survey in June,” Madison Gross, director of Consumer Insights at CarGurus, said in an interview with Zoom.
Despite an overall decline in new vehicle sales caused by the economic downturn and production disruptions caused by the pandemic, Gross believes the survey indicates that the industry can gain advantages from sales that must still come from those who had never planned to buy a new vehicle before the Covid epidemic19.
In fact, in the June survey, 22% of those who are lately making plans to buy in 2020 but have not yet done so, or who have already purchased a vehicle in 2020, did not plan to buy a vehicle before the pandemic.
“Before the pandemic, I feel like we’re moving in that direction, car ownership is declining as the facilities like the car sharing get bigger and bigger, and I really feel like we’ve changed in the other direction,” Gross said. “We’re seeing minimal interest in car sharing and public transportation because other people have protective considerations about them, we see things like other people who say they’re passing by to drive rather than fly for their next vacation and actually just look at their car a little bit like a position where you can go without a mask and just see a new scene.”
But the goal of buying a vehicle necessarily means a new car or truck. The economy remains in a bad position and the average transaction costs of new cars continue to rise. As of July 12, it was $35,071, according to J.D. Power, a jump of $414 from last week.
This fear was reflected in the CarGurus survey, according to Gross, who noted: “Because of these affordability issues, we are witnessing a change from new intent to used use. In April, 77% of those planning to buy new cash before the pandemic said they would stick to this decision. That number dropped to 65% in June. »
Whatever optimism is indicated through the CarGurus survey, more and more spaces in the United States may be looking to reopen, in some cases, such as Texas, Florida, and Arizona, which would lead to a resurgence of Covid-19 cases.
Cox Automotive’s leading economist Jonathan Smoke sounded the caution bell in his weekly auto market summary released Monday.
“The growing number of COVID-19 instances, which sets new records, threatens the recovery that created expansion in retail sales and the new structure in June,” Smoke wrote. “Strong demand in the automotive market has reduced the source of new and used vehicles, which has led to record prices. However, the increase in the number of cases leads to a decrease in customer activity and confidence, and employment recovery also seems to be slowing. We may see that the economic recovery stagnates because of these trends.”
Again, says Madison Gross of CarGurus, the longer the pandemic lasts, the more consumers would possibly be afraid to use public transport or use ride-sharing services, leaving a ray of hope for car sales, and concludes: “Vehicles fit more people’s lives than before the pandemic.
I’ve covered the subject of the automobile since 1989, first as HEAD of CNN’s Detroit office, then as national automotive editor for the Associated Press, General Motors beat the screenwriter.
I’ve covered the auto industry since 1989, first as head of CNN’s Detroit office, then as national editor of the Associated Press, General Motors beat the editor of Detroit News and the automotive news reporter. I also created Fiat Chrysler’s virtual communications team, pioneering the concept of “corporate journalism” where corporations tell their own stories through social media, videos and Internet broadcasts. We used those strategies to explain to the American public why Chrysler Group LLC was rescuing value. My first interview as an auto editor was with ford’s figure cruncher who was about to retire. He said, “Get ready, sit down, ask smart questions, then come closer, pay attention, and write the truth. Good advice. I use it.